ELON MUSK: Tesla Will Build A $40,000 Electric Car By 2016

Talk of an affordable electric car from Tesla dates back all the way to 2009, and we have no doubt the company’s CEO, Elon Musk, had envisaged launching such a model when he co-founded Tesla back in 2003.

Now, with its federal loan out of the way and production of its award-winning Model S slowing ramping up, Tesla’s future model range is back in the spotlight.

We already know that Tesla’s next model will be the Model X, a crossover based on the platform underpinning the Model S. The last we heard, the Model X will arrive in late 2014.

Beyond this, we should see another sedan and crossover launched, this time based on a third-generation platform, currently referred to as Tesla’s ‘Gen 3’ platform. These two additions will be considerably cheaper than the Model S and Model X, and have been described by Elon Musk as needing to be both compelling and affordable.

Speaking with Bloomberg recently, Musk said he’s neither going to leave Tesla [NSDQ:TSLA] nor see the company acquired until he can deliver cars with those attributes.

“What the world really needs is a great, affordable electric car,” Musk explained. “I’m not going to let anything go, no matter what people offer, until I complete that mission.”

Speaking specifically about the Gen 3-based sedan, Musk said it would be priced below $40,000 and arrive on the market within the next three to four years. He also said it would have a driving range of about 200 miles on a single charge.

The Gen 3-based sedan has previously been reported to be similar in size to a BMW 3-Series and both lighter and cheaper to produce than the current Model S. Following the launch of the sedan, a crossover will then be added and once both of these are on sale Tesla will finally offer a successor to its original Roadster.